Itinerary: Malaga - 60 km - Antequera - 108 km Granada. Total: 168 km.
Route Diagram:
Keywords: Bring your own lunch at the bazaar, Antequera stone tombs, Heneralifi Gardens in the rain.
April 20, 2024 Capacity: 7 people Self-driving
Today's driving kilometers are not much, the morning book departs at 9:30, and the breakfast at the hotel is quite rich.
(Here is a photo of the exterior of the hotel and the restaurant)
But today there was one of the most important places of the trip: the Alhambra in Granada, which is said to be the most visited attraction in Spain every year, and we booked online before we left for the country. If you don't arrive on time, it will be cancelled and our entry time is 14:30 pm.
On the way to Granada, you will also visit the Antquera Tombs, a World Heritage Site. After calculating the time, for the sake of insurance, it was decided that everyone should bring their own lunch.
Last night in Malaga, the city on the Mediterranean coast in southern Spain, the home of the talented Spanish painter Picasso, has a Roman rotunda from the 3rd century AD, a Muslim castle from the 6th century, and a mosque converted church from the 8th century. Like Granada, there are traces of Islamic culture and, of course, beautiful beaches.
Supposedly we should have spent some time in the city, but we couldn't find the time to find an old market: the Veresdi Central Market, which is a very local farmers' market.
It just so happened that everyone was going to prepare lunch, so I discussed with everyone, so I didn't go anywhere else in Malaga, so I went to this market and bought lunch by the way. Everyone agreed.
When you come to the Veresdi Central Market, there are calls and inquiries from time to time, and the air is intertwined with the smell of fruits, vegetables, and seafood, bustling, very large and clean, and all kinds of seafood give people a particularly deep impression and a thriving feeling.
In addition to raw food, there are also breads, pastries, and various snacks. Everyone walked around here for about 30 minutes, and lunch was purchased.
Officially depart Malaga at 10:00 and head to the Stone Tombs of Antequera, located on the eastern outskirts of the city of Antequera, about 50 minutes by car from Malaga. Crossing the green mountains and coming to the open central valley, there is a conspicuous high-speed railway, which is Antequera.
At 10:54 navigation came to the vicinity of the Antequera stone tomb, two large earthen bags appeared, but did not see the entrance, I took everyone to the west first, asked two locals, both told us to go down from the front of the gas station, when we arrived, we found that it was a modern cemetery.
Only then did I realize that the two locals had misunderstood what I meant, and that the original name of the Antequera Dolmens was Antequera Dolmens Site. There is no word "cemetery" in it, and I asked them where the "cemetery" was from the literal translation of Chinese.
I had to go back the way I came, and the entrance was on the east side of the two large dirt bags, about 200 meters east of where we parked.
Antequera Stone Tombs: are two earth-buried tombs, the Menga Stone Tomb and the Vieira Stone Tomb, built by the Bronze Age people from megaliths around 2500 BC, and in 1903, when they were rediscovered, there were still hundreds of bodies buried; Considered one of the finest Neolithic monuments in Europe. It was declared a World Heritage Site in 2016.
The tour takes about 40 minutes, and you can enter both caves, and you can't walk a few steps to the end after entering the hole. There was also a deep well in one of the holes, and when the staff was asked what it was for, they couldn't tell. The other cave is clearly identified as a cemetery.
After visiting the stone tomb of Antequera, drive to Antequera at 11:50, and come to a high platform in the southwest of the city in 10 minutes, with a panoramic view of the white mountain city and exquisite Spanish Baroque architecture; There are many churches with high spires, and it is said that there are more than 30 churches, and the interiors of the churches are gorgeous. Known as the "Florence of Andalusia" and also known as the "unmissable crossroads of Andalusia", the city is bordered by Seville to the west, Cordoba to the north and Granada to the east.
At 14:30 you must enter the Alhambra, you can't stay too long in Antequera, and after 30 minutes, go down the alleys and through the center of the city.
(This set of photos is Antequera)
The road to Granada is very open, with high mountains on both sides, and at 13:40 you enter Granada, the capital of Granada, in the Spanish Autonomous Community of Andalusia, located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, at the confluence of the Dárjo and Henier rivers. It was the capital of the last kingdom of the Arabs on the Iberian Peninsula. In 1492, the final battle of the Spanish Christian Reconquista was the famous Battle of Granada, which brought out the Muslim Andalusian dynasty of Nasr and freed all of Spain from Muslim rule.
14:00 Smooth entry to the Alhambra (scan the QR code to enter) Set against the backdrop of towering Sierra Nevada peaks, the Alhambra began as a walled castle before becoming a lavish palace for the emirs of the Nasrid dynasty of Granada. The iconic palace here is the Nasrid Palace, one of the highest levels of Islamic architecture in Europe. This exquisite palace, together with the attractive Generalife Gardens (summer residence), is one of the most striking examples of the Alhambra.
At 14:30 punctually arrive at the Royal Cyrus Palace complex, undoubtedly the most charming and attractive central part of the Alhambra, the entrance is called the Union Room, where the Council of Ministers and citizens' grievances are decided.
In the 16th century, it was converted into a chapel by Christians. Look up at the beautifully carved wooden ceiling.
After the Union Room, you enter the Golden Atrium, where the emir of Islam, the king of Islam at the time, listened to the people, on the left side and opposite the entrance to the Royal Palace of Commales, with a beautiful façade decorated with glazed bricks, stucco and wood carvings.
A corridor with sharp turns leads visitors to the Myrtle Atrium. Named after the myrtle hedges that surround the rectangular pool, this elegant atrium was the central space of the palace where the kings lived in the mid-14th century. The Myrtle Atrium leads to the Lion Palace, which was built by Mohammed V in the 14th century. The palace rooms are surrounded by an atrium of lions, and the center of the courtyard is decorated with an 11th-century fountain that gushes water from the mouths of 12 marble lions.
The layout of the courtyard is in golden ratio and shows the intricate geometric design of Islam – 124 slender columns are arranged in a polyaxial symmetry to support the beautifully decorated pavilion.
Of the four halls that surround the atrium, the Abentherahes Room on the south side is the most impressive, with its attractive octagonal stalactite ceiling.
In addition, there are also the Hall of the Kings, the Hall of the Two Sisters, etc., and the last one that follows the flow of people is the Patar Garden. Behind the reflecting pool here sits the Patar Palace, a small building with a portico with its own tower, the Tower of the Lady, dating back to the beginning of the 14th century.
After about 40 minutes of sightseeing inside the Nasrid Palace, after coming out and entering the Carlos V Palace (about 15 minutes), just east of the Nasrid Palace, it seems a little out of place with its surroundings, a huge rotunda, a bit like the bullring of Ronda, but with a dome.
Next, we ascend to the Alcázar Castle, still located in the Alhambra landscape, the remains of a 13th-century fortress where the cross and flag of the Reconquista of 1492 were raised.
From here, you can see the whole city of Granada and you can clearly see the snow on the top of the Nevada mountains. It was suddenly dark, the clouds were rolling, and just after leaving the Alcázar Castle, it was pouring rain, and we walked quickly into a souvenir shop to take shelter from the rain, and it took about 30 minutes for the rain to lighten up.
Follow the flow of people to prepare to go out of the scenic spot, but found that some people entered the ticket gate in the other direction, and asked in the past, it was to go to the Generalifi Garden, our ticket is a pass, and you can also enter, at this time just 17:00, I beckoned everyone to follow in. But at this time, Brother Liu and the two of them had already left the gate of the scenic spot.
We were in the rain in the Heneralifi Gardens, the King's gorgeous summer villa, with paths, atriums, pools, fountains, flowers and trees, which were refreshing, but the photo was not very good, and I was thinking that if the weather was fine tomorrow, I would take everyone back again.
17:38 out of the parking lot, 20 minutes to the hotel, Marcia Alhambra Palace Hotel, 4 stars, I don't know why the name has the word "Palace".
Check-in is less than 18:00. 20:00 to the restaurant on the second floor of the hotel to order food for 127.6 euros.
Tomorrow we will go to the penultimate stop of the trip: Córdoba.